Allen Calloway is seen in a June 28, 2012 file photo, speaking about Mayor Ed Lee's stop-and-frisk policy in San Francisco, Calif. He was shot and killed while playing
dodgeball with children on a new basketball court at Herz playground on
June 27, 2014.

Photo: Mike Kepka, The Chronicle

Allen Calloway is seen in a June 28, 2012 file photo, speaking...

Image 2 of 7

Balloons are seen tied to a fence at a new basketball court at Herz playground at a memorial for outreach counselor Allen Calloway on Monday, June 30, 2014 in San Francisco, Calif. Outreach counselor Allen Calloway was shot and killed while playing dodgeball with children on a new basketball court at Herz playground on June 27, 2014.

Balloons are seen tied to a fence at a new basketball court at Herz...

Image 3 of 7

Candles and bottles at a memorial for outreach counselor Allen Calloway sit on a new basketball court at Herz playground on Monday, June 30, 2014 in San Francisco, Calif. Outreach counselor Allen Calloway was shot and killed while playing dodgeball with children on a new basketball court at Herz playground on Friday, June 27, 2014.

Bob Palacio, superintendent of recreation and community services, walks past the recreation center at Herz playground on Monday, June 30, 2014 in San Francisco, Calif. Outreach counselor Allen Calloway was shot and killed while playing dodgeball with children on a new basketball court at Herz playground on June 27 2014.

Allen Calloway is seen in a June 28, 2012 file photo, speaking about Mayor Ed Lee's stop-and-frisk policy in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Mike Kepka, The Chronicle

Allen Calloway is seen in a June 28, 2012 file photo, speaking...

Image 6 of 7

The day after Mayor Ed Lee voiced his "Stop and Frisk" idea during a meeting with the San Francisco Chronicle editorial board, Allen Calloway, 30, an ex-gang member, reacts to the mayor's words on Thursday June 28, 2012 in San Francisco, Calif. Calloway says looking suspicious isn't enough cause for police to frisk people.

Photo: Mike Kepka, The Chronicle

The day after Mayor Ed Lee voiced his "Stop and Frisk" idea during...

Image 7 of 7

Balloons are tied to a fence at Herz Playground, where outreach counselor Allen Calloway was shot dead.

There's no explaining the killing of Allen Calloway. We can only give you the brutal facts and let you try to make sense of the senseless.

At 2 o'clock last Friday afternoon, Calloway was supervising a game of dodge ball with dozens of kids, including his 10-year-old son, at Herz Playground in Visitacion Valley. No one noticed the gunman until he walked into the fenced-off basketball court and opened fire.

Calloway was hit multiple times. His supervisor says he rushed up the hill when he heard the shots and tried to keep him conscious.

"I told him, 'You're going to be all right,' " said the counselor for Together United Recommitted Forever, which works to find jobs for at-risk youth. He didn't want to identify himself because of worries for his safety. "He said, 'All right.' "

But Calloway responded with just a whisper. In a matter of minutes, despite being rushed by ambulance to San Francisco General Hospital, the 32-year-old father of three was dead. The gunman fled, and police have no suspects.

"Even with all the violence in this community I never expected anything like this," said another counselor, also afraid to reveal his identity. "This crosses the line. There was a 7-month-old baby 10 feet away."

Predictably, Calloway was no angel. A former gang member, he had had several serious run-ins with the law. It's likely that not only did his past catch up with him, but showing up at the same place every day at the same time made him a tempting target.

So what do you do? Give up? Write off another young African American man? There are programs to help, and their stock-in-trade is optimism for a positive change.

Turning his life around

Calloway started at Turf as a junior outreach worker 2 1/2 years ago and was since promoted to senior outreach.

"He was trying to get his kids to come live with him," his supervisor said. "He said he was ready to go through the changes that he needed to be the father that he wanted to be."

He wasn't even assigned to supervise Turf's summer camp at the playground. He came to work an hour early because he enjoyed playing with the kids.

Safe place to play

Maybe that's why this happened. Maybe Calloway felt safe. The sponsors of the summer camp say since they've been running the program, they've noticed something: Kids come to the playground and actually play.

"Down in the neighborhood you've got to be tough," he said. "Here they run around, they play four-square and they play tag. You don't see kids playing tag on the street. We want to bring their childhood back."

In that setting, could Calloway have imagined he had left his past back on the street? Playing dodge ball with kids in the tree-lined playground in McLaren Park, it would be easy to imagine that his gang life was on hold, that this was a sanctuary.

But it never goes away. When there's gunfire in these neighborhoods San Francisco shrugs.

"If this shooting had been perpetrated by the police, people would be rioting," says Supervisor Malia Cohen, who represents the district. "This is violence by a young Africa American man on another young African American man. It is largely swept under the rug. And that's not OK."

The irony is that city officials have been proud of their recent efforts. Cohen helped coordinate a neighborhood "family connect" event that offered dental and eye exams and legal counseling. Police Chief Greg Suhr says Herz is next in line for an assigned officer at the playground.

Officers stationed

"Obviously, it is too late for Mr. Calloway," Suhr said, "but when we did it at Garfield Park, which was a long problem, it completely changed. The (criminal) element that was there is all but a distant memory."

Capt. Tim Falvey, who is in charge of the Ingleside Station, says his officers will be stationed at the playground for the foreseeable future.

"This community deserves better," he said. "The children who were playing in the park deserve better. This cannot stand."

Those are all fine words and positive steps. But the reality is gunfire on a playground and a cold-blooded killing with small children watching. Calloway is dead and those kids are changed forever. The cycle of violence rolls on.